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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22993237">Fire and Ash and Blood</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/PipersLostChild/pseuds/PipersLostChild'>PipersLostChild</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Arcana (Visual Novel)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst with a Happy Ending, Blood and Gore, Bottom Asra, Explicit Sexual Content, Heavy Angst, Multi, Sort Of, also, also some heavy handed foreshadowing, and the Devil won’t be easily put down, asra route, i break it badly before that happens, i was not happy with the ending, non-binary original character - Freeform, so have a fix-it, there is so much symbolism in this fic it’s scary, there will be some changes to the plot though, this will be a fast one just because I have most of it planned and written., which is good</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-03-02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-03-02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 07:35:52</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,396</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22993237</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/PipersLostChild/pseuds/PipersLostChild</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>The Devil has no power over the dead, and the Fool doesn’t represent change. A bargain is struck, and the journey is almost over. After all, three is a powerful number, and blood makes rituals even more potent.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Apprentice/Asra (The Arcana), Asra (The Arcana)/Original Character(s)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Fire and Ash and Blood</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Okay so this so going to be really quick. Because I do tarot, and I got kind of mad that they had all this symbolism but then didn’t do anything for it. So this got born.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>I stared at the water in front of me, as I mulled over the situation I was in. Lucio was in my body, the Devil was loose, or at least pretty close to loose, in Vesuvia. The Plague was coming back with Lucio, and was in fact tied to him coming back. The magician had said something, I couldn’t remember what exactly, about <em> choice. </em> And I felt dread well up in me. A niggle in the back of my mind that meant something was coming. I sighed and looked down at my knees. This would be my third time coming back. A whisper at the edge of her mind, chanting something that I'm trying desperately to ignore. <em> Twice dead, thrice reborn. Twice dead, thrice reborn. Twice dead, thrice reborn. </em> Again and again and again. Three times. Three. An auspicious number, simultaneously more and less stable than every other number. The first prime. The number of cards in a normal reading. The number of Fates. I <em> knew </em> in a way that defies reason that there is something more at work here. I gripped my hands in my flame red hair. The gaps in my memory were frustrating, with the holes too perfect to be anything but interference from an outside source. I sighed and let go of my hair and frustration. There was nothing I could do. </p>
<p>I looked up at the water. Fire. Water. A body made of water and magic. Change. Change is coming. A thought caused my brows to furrow. The Devil doesn’t deal with change. Or choice. Or any of the things that are surrounding me. In fact his specific dealings are in trickery and backstabbing. The Devil wouldn’t be able to create a body, he doesn’t have that power. And the fool doesn’t represent change or choice, not directly at least. The Fool represents the beginning of a journey, of innocence and naivety. I’m not  naive, and certainly not innocent. None of the things that are being attributed belong to either of those. In fact Portia better fits the Fool then I do. I am missing something. A Major Arcana that fits better. A card I forgot. I thought back to the secret room. “He needs all 21 of the major arcana.” Asra’s voice comes to me. But...there were only 20 chairs in the room. And Lucio wouldn’t have used the Fool. He would have used the Devil since that is who he was trying to call upon. “What are we missing?” I whispered aloud. The sight of a strange wave in the surf caught my attention. No not a wave, Asra. Finally, that man shows up. Perpetually late. I should get him a watch. Not that that would do any good. I jump up and rush to him, flinging myself into his arms. He spins me around, laughter filling the air, a wide smile on his face. I kiss him, how could I not? He’s beautiful when he smiles, and happiness suits him. “I missed you,” he whispers, lips moving against mine. He steps back. “You look beautiful,” he says, eyes crinkled at the corners. “Really?” I say, looking down at my costume. Tight black pants cover my legs, leading down to a pair of heels with feather embroidery in silver stitching. My shirt was sheer black, with a high neckline and a window for my chest. Over my shirt I wore a long black coat, light and airy that flowed around me. Feathers had been sewn into the shoulders and down the back of the coat, and a single clasp at the front drew the top together, while still showing the shirt below. It fit perfectly with the mask Asra has made for me. Black feathers drew over the top of my head, and around my eyes, leading into sequins stitched into the mask directly around the eye holes. A highly detailed beak came out, eerily reminiscent of a raven. The piece the costume had been built around. The mask that Asra had made me. The outfit was stunning in its simplicity and its elegance, and fit perfectly to my body. I was almost reluctant to change into my regular clothes. But this outfit would not help with the journey I was going on. I <em> knew </em>I needed to change. So I did, drawing my hand from waist level to above my head,  letting magic change me into my travel clothes. A worn white shirt, over loose pants and sturdy leather shoes. I smiled ruefully at Asra. “I hope when I get my body back I'll still be in my costume. I quite like it.”  </p>
<p>Asra smiled as well. “You look beautiful no matter what you are in.” He said to me truthfully. I nudged his ribs.”Flatterer.”</p>
<p>He shrugged. “Is it flattery if it's the truth?” A thought occurred to me. “Is your body safe?” I asked, drawing the conversation to more serious topics. “Yes,” he replied. “Muriel and Faust are watching it. And I was in a hurry to reach you, anyways.” I look at Asra. “Why?” I ask, worry and curiosity warring on my face. “Lucio was acting strange,” he said. “At first it seemed like he had just jumped back into his normal behavior, like he didn’t even notice that half the people at the Masquerade wanted him dead. But when I got closer to him I noticed that he was muttering under his breath, like he was checking off a list. ‘Emperor, Empress, Chariot…’. I think…” Asra sighed, drawing a hand through his hair, messing up his curly white locks. “I think he’s looking for guests to represent the Major Arcana in that ritual.” he said, not looking at me. I blink, confusion drawing my thoughts inwards. “The incomplete ritual we found in Lucio’s wing?” I ask. “Yes,” Asra replied. “But,” I started, “Why would Lucio bother with the ritual? He has a body now.” I ask, my voice pitched higher with confusion. Pain flickers across Asra’s face. “I suspect that the ritual had more to it than just a body for Lucio.” he admits. “Otherwise, why would the Devil help Lucio return to our world? Why try to finish the ritual. A thought occurs to me. “You said to Nadia that Lucio was trying to become the Devil. What if…” I trail off, a furrow in my brow as I mull my thoughts over. “What if he’s still trying to do that? Merge with the Devil.” </p>
<p>    Asra looks startled, before worry draws his brows together once more. “Do you remember the compulsion that affected me when we found Lucio’s dining room?” he asked quietly. I nods my head yes.”I felt it again,” Asra admits, “Faint, but pervasive throughout the Palace. That was the other reason I was in such a hurry to come here. I thought I might be safe from the compulsion here. It seems I was right.” he says quietly as he stares out across the ocean, once more running a hand through his hair. A small smile pulls at my face at how Asra’s hair sticks up wildly from the paste in it to keep it away from his face. “I just can’t see how everything ties together.” he admits. “Or how to put things right. Honestly, I, I’m… a bit lost right now.”  As if summoned, Scout barks from the left of me and Asra. “Rowruf!” Their tail wags in excitement. Asra’s eyes dart back and forth between me and Scout. I raise my hands as if to say ‘don’t look at me!’. Asra snorted. “So this is your mysterious guide,” he says. Asra kneels down to look into Scout’s pale eyes. I’m not sure what Asra is looking for, but when he stands up he looks satisfied. “Thank you, Scout,” Asra says, looking down at Scout, “for protecting the one I love most.” I flush in surprised pleasure. “Arf arf!” Scout replies. They bound up the beach and over a dune, disappearing from sight. Soon pink sand flies through the air as they start digging holes in the dunes. The sand drifts down around ma and Asra, like small pink snowflakes. I smile slightly and press a kiss into Asra’s cheek. He blushes prettily. I so love embarrassing him. He looks at me quizzically, however before he can ask Scout comes bounding over. “Rufruf!” they bark, something clenched in their paw. They seem to have found what they were looking for. They hold out their paw. Something small, round, and metallic glints in their paw. A compass?  Asra gapes, mouth opening and closing like a fish. “That my compass!<br/>He blurts out. “How..what are you doing with my compass?” I cover my grin with my hand. “Ruff!” Scout replies. Asra looks chagrined as he realizes that Scout can’t answer him. Asra cautiously picks the compass out of Scout’s paw. The needle begins to spin, wobbling from Asra, to me, spins some more, then points straight up the beach away from the sea. Scout is gone when we look up from the Compass, even the shallow holes they dug had disappeared, leaving no trace they were ever here offering guidance. I look down at the compass again, leaning over Asra’s shoulder to do so. It looks old, but the symbols aren’t cardinal directions. I don't know what they are. “You said this is yours,” I whisper in Asra’s ear, reveling in the shiver and flush that spread over his body.  “....yes, though i haven’t used it in awhile.” he replied, resolutely looking down at the compass with red tinted ears. “It… um. It doesn't point north. It points to your heart's desire,” he says finally looking up at me. Gods he was cute when he was flustered. His brow furrowed and he looked away again. “Right now… i want to stop Lucio and restore you to your body more than anything else.” </p>
<p>I know I should be serious right now. I know that we should plan out our next move. But more than anything else, right now I want to see that flush rise to Asra’s cheeks. I want to see if Asra will flirt back, or turn into a stuttering mess. So I lean over his shoulder, resting my head on top of my hand on his shoulder. I press my hips into him, pulling our body flush together. “more than <em> anything?” </em> I ask. His lips part on a gasp as his cheeks flush. He swallows and licks his lips, and I <em> want. </em> My left hand trails down from where it rests on his shoulder, feeling the sheer material and gold buttons making up his costume. I kiss the side of his neck as my hand drifts toward the junction of his thighs. I stop my hand on his navel, rest it there. He bucks his hips and whines, and I smirk into his neck. It’s clear he’s used to being in control. He’s gotten used to leading. But right now, watching him give up that control to me, here in the open where anyone can see? A quiet, dark part of me wakes and growls, possession curling through my body with the lust, and I growl in his ear, “Mine.” I cup his erection and he throws his head back onto my shoulder, “Ah!” he moans into the air. The high collar of his shirt prevents me from marking him as <em> mine </em> and I hate it. A snap of my fingers and it is gone, leaving his neck bare to my mouth as I bite down, slipping my hands into his pants at the same time. He moans loudly, thrusting forward into my hand. “Look at you,” I whisper into his ear. “A spread out and wanton,and all for <em> me. </em> ” I bite lightly at his lobe. “You are <em> mine.” </em>I growl. “Aren’t you? You stole a body for me, and that makes you mine. Just as I am yours.” Asra’s eyes are closed as he pants into the air. “Yours,” he gasps. “I am yours.”  I smile and bite at the same spot as before, making it darker. “Yes,” I say lowly. “Yes, you are. Now, come for me.” I say into his ear as the hand that was under my chin pinches his nipple. His body goes rigid in mine as his orgasm crests, eyes open and staring blindly at the stars, and his mouth opens, but no sound comes out. He looks beautiful. Possession and pleasure coil within me as he rides out his orgasm. He gasps as the waves of pleasure rolling through his body finally end. He sags back into me, eyes close as he gathers his wits about him.  By the time he comes back to himself I have magiced his clothes clean, and put his shirt back on. He stands slowly, legs still jelly from his orgasm. “What...what was that?” he asks as he faces me again. “I don't know,” I reply. “But I enjoyed it.” A flush rises prettily to his cheeks as he look down. “So did I,” he replies, ducking his head as he tries to hide his blush beneath a fringe he doesn’t currently have. “You’ve never done that before.” He says suddenly. Confusion fills me. I haven’t? But… that felt so familiar. The curl of possession twisting with lust in my gut felt like an old friend, not something new. It felt right to see my mark high up on his neck, visible even under the tall collar of his shirt. My eye is drawn to the sand, and I spot the compass Asra must have dropped during the act. “Asra.” I say, drawing his attention back to me. “The compass. As much as I would like to discuss what just happened, we still have to get my body back, especially before Lucio starts the ritual.” Asra looks down at the compass at my feet. He bends down and picks it up, dusting off the sand from its worn body. He looks up suddenly, a determination making his eyes burn. “We are discussing this, once all this is over,” he says in a low voice. “Of course,” I reply, hooking my arm through his. I don’t mention the feeling of dread that pulls at my stomach, leaving me with the uncomfortable idea that I might not live to the end of this. </p>
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